Police recover 28 cars stolen from rental agencies, private drivers

Provincial police recovered 28 cars reported or suspected to have been stolen from rental-car agencies and area residents from a field in East Pattaya.

Center for Auto and Motorcycle Crime Suppression officers raided the locked property on Soi Dinlukrang in the Nongyai neighborhood Jan. 11. Eleven of the Toyota, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and other vehicles owned by car-rental agencies or private owners have been retrieved. Another 17 were waiting for owners to identify them.

Police recovered 28 stolen cars from a field in East Pattaya.

Chaluay Sripannoi, the owner of a white Honda Civic, said she licensed her car to a Pattaya rental agent in December to generate some extra income. It was rented for 8,000 baht for 10 days, but was never returned. The car was equipped with a Global Position System tracker, which showed that for three days it was parked in Nongyai.

Col. Theerapol Jindaluang said a Chonburi-wide gang of auto thieves is believed to be behind the thefts. The cars are either shipped off to Cambodia or altered to sell locally.

Police urged rental agents to closely scrutinize those utilizing their services and for those offering cars to agents to ensure that the broker is legitimate.

This article was published in the Pattaya Mail newspaper on Friday January 24, 2014 (Vol. XXII No. 4).